You Are Cordially Invited
by BellaLeigh1
Summary: Companion to You Can't Fight Destiny. A series of stories showing the Mikaelson weddings.
1. Operation Wedding Crash Part 1

_**Since I ended up with that time skip in You Can't Fight Destiny, there were a lot of things that I skipped over. Including the Kolvina and Marbekah weddings. I'll probably also post the Freelin wedding here, for consistency. **_

_**First up is Kolvina. Their plan was just to elope, but Caroline, Josh, and the Mikaelsons have other ideas. **_

**~Operation Wedding Crash~**

Josh stared at his phone. An email. Davina had sent him an email. That was certainly new. And what in the world was up with that subject line? "So, this happened…"? Even more curious, it had been sent to both him and Marcel. It couldn't be an emergency. She would have called, or dropped a note directly into his pocket with magic.

So, as curious as he was, he forced himself to stay at the bar and keep working. It wasn't until he closed up for the night and went upstairs that he let himself pull out his laptop and open the email.

Only to be greeted by a picture of a beaming Davina, holding up her left hand to show off a rather impressive diamond ring. It was captioned "I said yes." She went on to ask Marcel to give her away and told Josh that she understood that he wouldn't be able to be there, but she still wanted him to be the first to know.

He wiped at the tears that started to form. This was what he hadn't really considered when he agreed to be Elijah's bodyguard. Hayley had tried to warn him that they were asking him to give up his life for this. But, it didn't really occur to him what that would really mean. Not until he was presented with not being at his best friend's wedding.

And then Elijah walked in. "Josh? What's wrong?"

Josh closed his laptop. He wasn't quite sure why, but he didn't want Elijah to see Davina's picture. The odds of it triggering some memory were very slim, but some instinct told him to keep Elijah away from any part of his old life. "My best friend sent me an email, today. She's getting married. In Chicago."

"And you're crying because…?"

"Because I can't exactly go, can I? I mean, I'm supposed to be looking out for you." He sighed. "That came out wrong. I didn't mean to blame you. I just never expected this. I'm sorry. I do not, for one second, regret being there for you. But, I realized just now that I miss her."

Elijah smiled at him. "And you're in tears over the thought of missing her wedding. I don't know, it seems to me like she's more than just a friend."

"My family wasn't exactly very accepting when I came out. I haven't spoken to any of them in longer than I can remember. I mean, shit! None of them even came looking for answers when I died. Dee is a witch, who also has nothing to do with her family for various reasons. I met her after the man that took her in when she ran away accidentally turned me. I was twenty, she was sixteen. It's funny, in a way. I'm a vampire, she's a witch. But, with each other, we could ignore all that. We were a couple of kids just trying to hold on in a world turned upside down and crazy. We were each other's one tiny piece of normalcy. I say that she's my best friend. But, that's just on paper. You're right. She's more than that. She's my sister. Not because my Sire considers her his daughter, but because I love her."

"And now she's getting married. And you think that you can't be there for her." There was a pause. "Have I ever met her?"

Josh shook his head. "She knows about you, obviously. So, she understood when I called her to tell her that I needed to get you out of the country. But, no. You never actually met."

Elijah seemed satisfied with that answer, but Josh knew that the time was quickly coming when he was going to need to come up with a story about how they met. And why Elijah trusted him so much.

"You should go."

"I'm not leaving you. If something happens while I'm gone…"

"Josh, you've given up so much for me. You packed up and moved halfway across the planet, because that was what I needed to be safe. I don't know why you did it, and right this minute, it isn't important. What _is_ important is that your little sister is getting married. And I would never forgive myself if you missed it because you were busy babysitting me. I think I can take care of myself for a few days. So far, the most threatening thing to come around is Antoinette. And it's not like I don't have somewhere I can go to get away from her. Please, don't let me take your entire life from you."

Josh had to smile. Maybe Elijah was right. And actually… "All right, I'll go. But first, there's something I need you to do for me."

**~Operation Wedding Crash~**

"So, are we really going to let Kol and Davina get married in City Hall, with nobody but Marcel there?"

Josh laughed. Leave it to Caroline to jump right in to the matter at hand. "Well, they don't know it, but I'll be there, too. I'm going to surprise them."

The things he did for this family - his family. Like sitting in his office downstairs at some ridiculous time of the morning so he could be a part of a group Skype call at a time that was good for everyone else. Without Elijah hearing any of it. When had this become his life?

"Are you sure that's a good idea, Joshua? I'm not sure I like the idea of leaving Elijah all alone."

"I have been informed that he will never forgive himself if I miss my little sister's wedding because I'm busy babysitting him. And since I'm here more to protect his sanity than anything else, I'm not sure that making him hate himself is really the best way to go about that."

"Fine! So, they'll have Marcel and Josh. Still. That's hardly a real wedding. And they deserve better than that. They went through so much to be together. Hell! They both literally died, for Christ's sake! Kol died _twice_. They deserve a real wedding, with the people they love all there to celebrate with them."

"Yes, well, since most of the people they love can't be in the same city as Kol, that makes things a bit difficult, doesn't it, love?"

Caroline rolled her eyes. "Have you forgotten what I do for a living? Just because your bodies can't be in the same city as Kol, that doesn't mean you can't be at his wedding. I can send my two best Astral Projection students to New York and Los Angeles. Now, what to do about this City Hall nonsense? Obviously, Davina is wishing for more than that. I mean, she didn't just invite Marcel to the wedding. She asked him to give her away. Not exactly something that's done in a City Hall wedding."

"I agree. She deserves the white dress and the flowers, and for Kol to be waiting for her at the end of the aisle that Marcel walks her down. So does he, for that matter. It took him a thousand years to find her. He deserves to stand there, with Nik at his side, and to see her walking towards him."

"Maybe I can convince her of that. Maybe even get her to come visit us so that Rebekah can take her dress shopping."

"Do that! Freya, I'm going to assume that you don't need my students' help to get you there? Or are you and Hayley going to actually go physically? Since you can?"

"I'm going to project in. After all, I kind of murdered the bride. If either of them don't want me there, it will be easy for me to wink out. And they might be less inclined to be honest about it if I actually traveled all that way to see them. Hayley?"

"I… I don't know what I'm going to do, yet."

"Well, I know for a fact that Hope can project herself. She's come to see me that way."

"Maybe I'll meet up with Hope at the school? That way, if she can't project both of us, we can get a student to help, but I won't be insulting her abilities by just assuming she can't do it."

"Well then. It sounds like Operation Wedding Crash is a go. Marcel, as father of the bride, is going to convince the happy couple to let him give them as close to a real wedding as can be managed under the circumstances. Caroline is going to arrange transportation for most of our uninvited guests. Freya and Hope will take care of the rest."

"Operation Wedding Crash?"

"Well, since none of us were actually invited, technically we're all crashing it. It seems fitting. Let me have my fun, Klaus."

"Well, actually, you _were_ invited. She's just assuming you wouldn't be able to go."

"She never actually invited me. She said she understood that I wouldn't be able to go. And, I have no intention of RSVPing. So, I'm still crashing. Let. Me. Have. My. Fun. Marcel."

"Have the past few months been boring, Josh?"

"No. I'm just feeling a bit punchy, is all. Been on a bit of an emotional roller coaster. Finding out that Davina is getting married, realizing I can't go, being told under no uncertain terms that I _have_ to go. And, right now it's late, and I'm downstairs in my office because if Elijah overhears all of this…"

"So, really the problem is that the past couple days, at least, have been anything_ but_ boring."

"Pretty much, yeah."

"Go on and get some sleep. Now that we have a rough plan figured out, we can do the rest of this through text messages. And all you can really do from your end is make sure that you're there. I'll text you the details in plenty of time for you to make arrangements."


	2. Operation Wedding Crash Part 2

Davina couldn't help but smile as she looked at herself in the mirror. In some ways, all of this seemed like overkill for a wedding with only one guest. But, Marcel and Rebekah were right. Kol deserved this. And so did she, actually. Shopping for a wedding dress had been way too much fun, and she had to admit that Rebekah had incredible taste. Then again, that could be from her age. She has seen the absolute best and worst that the fashion world has ever dreamed up. And worn it all. Hard not to develop a good eye after all of that.

"You look stunning. Kol is a very lucky man." That voice…

She spun around, to see Josh leaning against the doorframe, situated in just the right way to not be caught by the mirror she had been looking in. "Josh! What are you doing here? Are you sure that leaving Elijah is a good idea?"

He walked over and hugged her. "I couldn't let my best girl get married without me, now could I? And Elijah insisted. He caught me crying over the fact that I couldn't go and told me that I wasn't allowed to miss my little sister's wedding."

She smiled. "Little sister?"

"You are way more than my best friend, Davina. You, Marcel, and the Mikaelsons are my family, now."

"I know. And I feel the same way. I just like giving you a hard time. I've missed you so much."

But, then, there were more surprises. Hope was the next one to walk in the door, followed by the rest of the Mikaelsons, including Hayley. Davina looked around, but nothing bad seemed to be happening. And then Hope walked right through a chair, making Davina smile as she realized what they were all doing here. "So, who do I have to thank for this?"

"Caroline. Though, Hayley and Hope are actually here courtesy of Hope, herself. And I came under my own power. And, Davina… the reason I just astral projected was because I want you to know that this is your day. If you or Kol don't want me here, I will wink out, and that will be the end of it."

Considering Freya had pretty much murdered her, nobody, apparently including Freya herself, would blame Davina for not wanting her there. But, she was Kol's sister. And there was already one sibling who couldn't be there. Davina wasn't going to be the one to send another one away. If Kol didn't want his oldest sister there, that was up to him. But, she would leave that as his choice, not hers. "No, stay. A wedding is supposed to be about family, right? The Mikaelsons might be one of the most screwed up families in the history of the world, but I'm about to become one of them. Always and forever, right? We may hurt each other in ways that nobody else can ever begin to, but… in the end, we're still family. And we stick by each other."

"Well, I see who the mature one in this relationship is. Now then, I think that we Mikaelsons should go annoy our brother and leave Davina and Josh to spend some time together. After all, we have discovered that astral projection is an option for us. With Josh on another continent, keeping our big brother out of trouble, they have very few ways to actually see each other."

As the Mikaelsons all filed out of the room, weirdly using the doorway despite not needing to bother, Hope turned around. "Josh is right, Aunt Davina. You look like a fairy tale princess."

Davina gasped. "Aunt Davina…" Somehow, for all that she just said that she was about to become a Mikaelson, hearing Hope call her that drove it home in a way that maybe nothing else could have. A family. A real family. Oh, they were dysfunctional as Hell, and half the time they wanted to kill each other. But, when the chips were down, they were there for each other. And now, they had all jumped through magical hoops to be here. To be here for Kol, and to welcome her into the family. Eventually, she and her new big sister were going to have to talk about what happened to her. But, she had a feeling that eventually, everything was going to be okay.

"You okay there, kiddo?"

She wiped at her eyes. "Yeah. Just… Hope calling me Aunt Davina kind of drove it home that I really am about to become a Mikaelson. I really am about to have this whole family who would do just about anything for me. Saying it myself was one thing. Having one of them say it back was something else, entirely."

He chuckled and took her into his arms. "Yeah. It was kind of the same for me when Hayley asked me keep an eye on Elijah for them. Being told that they were asking me because I was the only one they could trust, and Hayley flat-out saying that I was part of the family… It was the nicest thing anyone had ever said to me. Made it damn hard to turn her down." He let her go, then. "Listen… I brought a present."

"You being here is all the present I need. You didn't have to bring anything."

"Well, this one is really more for Kol than for you. Though, now that I think about it, it might actually be even _more _for Hayley, than anyone. So, I'm going to let you be the one to decide if I actually do this."

**~You Are Cordially Invited~ **

"Surprise!"

Kol couldn't be hearing that voice. Klaus was in L.A. And even if he wasn't, he couldn't be in Chicago. That was the price they had all paid to save Hope. They had to stay away from each other. Forever. Or at least until Freya figured out something more permanent to do with the Hollow.

"I think we may have been a bit too much of a shock. You okay there?"

And Rebekah was supposed to be in New York. What in the world was going on? He turned around. And found himself looking at his entire family. Well… all but one. "What are you doing here? Are you all _trying _to bring about the end of the world?" It wasn't often that he had to be the voice of reason for his family. In fact, it could probably be said that this was a first.

Rebekah rolled her eyes at him. "Relax. Nik and I are your wedding present from Caroline."

It took a minute for that to translate in his head. "Astral projection. You aren't really here." He looked at Hope. "And how did you get here, little one?"

"The same way. Only I was able to do it myself. For me and for Mom."

"And I handled my own. And I'm going to tell you the same thing I told Davina. This is your day. If you don't want me here, I'll leave."

Kol looked around. They had come. They had all come. They couldn't be here, physically, but they had still come. The only way they could. And then he thought of the one who couldn't be there. Not in any way. The one who couldn't know how badly he was missed. He shook his head, and wished that she had actually flown in, so that he could hug her. But, he understood why she had done this the way she had. "Thank you. All of you. And thank Caroline for me. This… knowing that you all wanted to be here for this… It means a lot to me." He wanted to hug all of them. Him, Kol Mikaelson. The original ripper. Getting all sentimental and wanting to hug his siblings.

Klaus clapped his hands together, then. "Well then! What are we all waiting for? Let's get you married!"

"Please don't think that this is an afterthought. I just honestly never expected it to be possible. But, will you be my best man?"

"I'd be honored, brother."

**~You Are Cordially Invited~ **

The minister had to be compelled after the fact to forget them. There were just too many weird things about this wedding. The best man walking straight through a pew at one point was a highlight. Which probably lessened the weirdness factor of the fact that if you were really observant you would realize that most of the guests never touched anyone. In fact, only the father of the bride, and the "man of honor", ever hugged the bride and groom. The rest just smiled and told them congratulations. But then he was gone, and the party headed downstairs.

The reception room of the church was probably not what Davina had dreamed of when she was a little girl. And Kol wished like Hell that he could have given her everything she had ever wanted. Money wise, he certainly could have. But, there were some things that all the money in the world couldn't fix. Between the bride having disowned everyone she had called family for the first sixteen years of her life and the groom being unable to be in the same city as most of his family without risking the end of the world, there was just no way to give her the fairy tale she deserved.

"Penny for your thoughts, Mr Mikaelson?"

He smiled at his wife. "I was just thinking, Mrs Mikaelson, that I wish I could have given you the proper fairy tale wedding you deserve. I'm sorry if this wasn't what you've always dreamed of."

She rolled her eyes and then kissed him. "Don't be silly. I just married the love of my life. I have a room full of people downstairs who jumped through magical hoops to be able to share this with me and welcome me into their family. So that bitch who gave birth to me isn't here. I wouldn't want her here, anyway. And most of my guests aren't actually here. But, they did the best they could under the circumstances. Maybe today wasn't exactly the fairy tale wedding I dreamed of as a child. But, the thing about fairy tales is that they aren't real. This is real. And I still got my real life Prince Charming. The rest is just trappings. You are what matters. You and your family, our family. Speaking of which, we should probably go downstairs and join our party. I have no idea how much longer the witches that brought them here can hold their spells together."

"Good point." He held his arm out to her. "Shall we, then?"

Josh met them at the bottom of the stairs. "We're doing this as close to the right way as can be managed under the circumstances. So, I get to play MC for a bit. Davina, how do you want to be introduced? I never found out if you planned on taking his name."

"Davina Mikaelson. I am going to take his name, but that doesn't mean I'm giving up my own identity. None of that 'Mr and Mrs Kol Mikaelson' business, please."

Kol chuckled. No, her answer didn't actually surprise him in the slightest. And he wouldn't have it any other way.

And then Josh stepped through the door into the reception room. "Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention please. I would like to present, for the very first time, Kol and Davina Mikaelson."

They walked into the room amid cheers and clapping. No, it wasn't quite the fairy tale. But it would do. Marcel hugged Davina, and then pulled a surprised Kol into a hug. "You better take good care of my girl."

The rest of the guests couldn't actually touch them. But, they did the best they could.

"Welcome to the family, little sister."

Kol laughed at the stunned look on Davina's face at Rebekah's words. But, before he had a chance to comment, Josh was back in MC mode.

"All right, let's get this party started. Kol and Davina, if you'll take your places in the center of the room, please? It's time for your first dance as a married couple."

But, as they took their places, Kol noticed Josh giving Davina a quizzical look. And Davina nodded. What in the world were those two planning? The music started, it sounded like A Thousand Years by Christina Perri. Played on the piano. And then the lyrics started. That wasn't Christina Perri singing. It wasn't a woman at all. The voice sounded familiar, but he couldn't quite place it.

"Elijah."

At Hayley's stunned gasp, Kol turned around. Josh had set up a screen on one wall. And on that screen, he was playing a video. Of Elijah playing the piano and singing a sappy love song about someone who had waited a thousand years to find the love of their life. Though, at the moment, the song itself was secondary. Thanks to Josh, even Elijah was there. He didn't know, couldn't know, just what this really meant to the groom and his family. But he was there.

Kol wiped the tears that were forming from his eyes. He gave a quick glance around the room. Everyone was staring at the screen. Watching the one family member none of them ever expected to see. And he wasn't the only one crying.

When the song ended, Kol walked up to Josh and hugged him. "Thank you. Thank you for giving me my brother back. Even if it's just for one day."

"Of course, man. Now, do you want me to replay it for your first dance, or would it be easier for you if I played the original version?"

"Play it again."

And so Kol danced with his wife for the first time, while his family looked on. His entire family. Even the one that didn't remember who he was. No, it wasn't the fairy tale he wished he could have given Davina. But, it was as close as they could get under the circumstances.

The song ended, and the dance came to an end. Then Davina danced the father-daughter dance with Marcel. Which, in a normal wedding reception, would have opened the dance floor to the rest of the guests. And Josh did claim Davina for a dance. But, the rest of the guests weren't actually there, physically. In fact, the only ones who were even in the same place were Hayley and Hope.

"Well, I guess it's time to liven this up a bit, then, isn't it?" And with that, Josh put on a playlist of faster songs, songs people could dance to alone. And they danced. All of them.

Until Rebekah flickered out and back in. And sighed. "Unfortunately, I have been informed that my witch is getting tired. It's time for me to go. Marcel, I will see you when you get home. Congratulations, Kol. And Davina… Welcome to the family. I love you both." She looked around the room. "I love all of you. Goodnight."

Which seemed to be the cue for the party to break up. Honestly, Kol was surprised that little Hope had held on as long as she did. "Congratulations Uncle Kol and Aunt Davina. I love you." And then she and Hayley were gone.

Klaus was next, and then Freya also winked out. Leaving only the bride, groom, and the two guests who had been able to be there physically.

Marcel hugged them both and kissed Davina on the cheek. "All right, you two. I rented the bridal suite at the Waldorf Astoria hotel in your name. There is also a limo waiting for you outside. Congratulations. I love you. Kol, I mean it, you better take good care of my girl. You may be an Original, but I can still kill you. Don't ever forget it."

Kol chuckled at that. And then, it was Josh's turn.

"Congratulations, Mrs Mikaelson. And, welcome to the family, Kol." That earned him a laugh. But, it made sense. Josh was Davina's best friend before he started to think of Marcel and the Mikaelsons as family. So, while the others were welcoming Davina to the family, for Josh it was the other way around. And then he too hugged Kol and kissed Davina on the cheek.

And then, the newlyweds were alone. Once again, Kol held his arm out to his wife. "Well, Mrs Mikaelson. Shall we go check out that room Marcel rented us? Your dress is beautiful, but I am more than ready to get you out of it."

Davina laughed and took his arm. "I definitely like the sound of that."

He didn't know if she would ever let him turn her. This could end up being temporary. But, for that moment, Kol Mikaelson had everything he ever wanted, and more than he had ever dreamed of.


	3. It's About Damn Time - Marbekah pt 1

**_When Marcel proposes, it's up to Hayley to give Rebekah some tough love to keep her from throwing her own happiness away._**

**~You Are Cordially Invited~**

"Rebekah?! What are you doing here? And why didn't you tell me you were coming?"

Rebekah hugged her and then walked into the house. "Don't worry, I checked with Caroline to make sure that Hope is in Mystic Falls. I wouldn't risk her."

"That wasn't an accusation, Beks. I know that you would never do anything that might hurt Hope. I'm just surprised to see you, is all. You usually call before you fly out here."

"Yes, well. I desperately needed some advice. And to get away from New York and Marcel for a bit."

"What's wrong? Are you two fighting?"

"He…" Rebekah looked on the verge of tears, which worried Hayley. "The bloody idiot went and proposed!"

Hayley blinked. "And that's somehow a bad thing? I mean, I thought that that was what you wanted since… shit! Since you were human. To love someone and have him love you back. To have him want to spend forever with you."

"It was. It is. And for about two hundred years, I've wanted that someone to be Marcel. I've dated other men, but… within about five minutes of being in the same city as him, I realized that they were just replacements. They weren't who I really wanted. I wanted him. It's always been Marcel. But, now that it's happened… I realize that I can't."

She was making no sense. And Hayley wanted to strangle her. It wouldn't do a damned thing, but it would be fun to try. Because Marcel was to Rebekah what Elijah was to Hayley. With one major difference. He wanted her, too. She turned away so that Rebekah wouldn't see the tears forming. "Come on. I want to show you something." She grabbed Rebekah's hand and pulled her down the stairs. Once downstairs, she grabbed the box with Elijah's things and started rummaging through it until she found what she was looking for. She handed it to Rebekah. "Go on, open it."

Rebekah took the small jewelry box with shaking hands. She obviously suspected what was in there. She opened it and then whistled. "This is gorgeous. When did you take it off? And why have I never seen it, before?"

"I didn't take it off. Why he didn't consult you when buying it is anybody's guess. But, he never got around to giving it to me before our lives went to Hell. I… I think I know when he was planning to. He had this whole candlelit dinner set up for us. It was beautiful. But, we got a bit distracted."

Rebekah laughed at that. "You got distracted, clothes started coming off, which just distracted you more…"

"Pretty much, yeah. And then Hope started screaming, and everything with the Hollow started. It was just one thing after another. And then he died, and Freya's pendant happened. And I started to turn against him. And then he left us." She closed her eyes, not wanting her friend to see her pain. "So, I never got my ring. He was gone before I ever found out that he had intended to make me a member of the family for real. But, my point is… This is the future your brother wanted for us. This is the future the Hollow stole from me. And this is the future that Marcel is offering you, and that you are just throwing away."

"Hayley… Oh my God, Hayley. I am so sorry. I honestly didn't know."

"Don't feel sorry for me, Beks. Just tell me why you want to walk away just when you get offered the kind of forever love you've always dreamed of. What is going on in that head of yours, anyway?"

"Because he deserves better. I am so damaged. I don't just want love. I want family. I want a life with context. I want so many things that I can never have. And it isn't fair to tie him down to someone who is constantly dreaming of something she can't have."

"You have a family, Rebekah. You have two brothers who love you. Three, if you count the one that loved you so much that he couldn't bear to never see you again. You have a sister who is working her ass off to try to fix things so you can come home. You have a niece who adores you. You have me. I may not be family in the conventional sense, but I love you like a sister. And you have a man who wants nothing more than to be standing by your side when the stars burn out. Sounds to me like you already have family, Rebekah." Rebekah started to open her mouth to protest, but Hayley cut her off. "If, by 'family' you mean children, well… There's always adoption. You could even take in an orphaned witch or werewolf, a child who is already a part of our secret. Do you have any idea how much I wish it occurred to Marcel to hunt you down and send me to you? I mean, a lot of good came out of the way things actually happened. I probably never would have slept with Klaus, so I wouldn't have Hope. But… I wonder how much of the bad things that have happened also wouldn't have if the first twenty years of my life had gone differently."

She wasn't done, yet, though. How it became her job to give Rebekah the speech that somebody should have given her several centuries ago was anybody's guess. And yet, here they were. "You aren't human, Rebekah. You will never be human. Your parents stole that, and everything that comes with it, from you. And there's no getting it back. And it sucks, I know. But, here's the thing. You are going to be standing here to watch the stars burn out. So is Marcel. And what he wants is to be standing by your side when that day comes. You obviously love him. You want a life with context? _Marcel _is your context, Rebekah. Would you really rather doom both of you to an eternity alone than take the love he is so desperate to give you? The way I see it, the two of you can be alone and miserable for a few more millennia until the world ends, or you can be standing in his arms and watch the sun burn out together. Which would you prefer? Not just for yourself, but for him? Because you… you aren't just making this choice for yourself, Rebekah. Do you really have a right to say that you know better than he does what he deserves, and what will really make him happy?"

Rebekah was staring at her. "Hayley… Elijah being gone, it isn't forever. Freya will figure something out, some way to get our family back together. And we'll get him back. He'll be standing by your side when the sun burns out. You have to believe that."

Hayley shook her head. "This isn't about me, Rebekah. Your brother and I are an issue for another time. Right now, my only concern is keeping you from making the biggest mistake of your life."

"Yeah, well. Eventually, we're going to have to talk about you and Elijah. You know that, right?"

Hayley shrugged. Honestly, it was the last thing she wanted. To talk about him, and how he broke her heart. Besides, right now, she had bigger concerns. Mainly, getting her friend to let her help plan her wedding. "A conversation for another time. Where are you getting your dress? Are you coming to New Orleans, or are Freya and I going to New York?"

Rebekah laughed. "Or, we could fly to Europe. Paris or Rome."

Hayley felt the blood drain from her face. "Not Paris." She wasn't really sure where anything was in relation to Manosque, but being in the same country as Elijah just felt too close. Too tempting.

"No. Not Paris. As much fun as it would be to have Josh come up and join us. Not Paris. I'm sorry. I was thinking in terms of fashion. I didn't think." She looked thoughtful. "Well, New York is certainly home to a lot of major designers and high fashion. But, I think I'll come here. We can have Caroline join us, too. Wait! _Can_ we have Caroline join us? I mean, how much can she travel during the school year, anyway?"

Hayley laughed. "She can take a weekend away. The school won't fall down around everyone if she takes a couple days of vacation. Ric is perfectly capable of handling things for a bit." She smirked then. "So, now that we've established where you're going to shop for your wedding dress, don't you have a phone call to make? I mean, us girls can have a blast planning your wedding, but you kind of need to acquire a fiance, first."

"Right! I need to tell Marcel that my answer is yes!" She hugged Hayley. "Thank you! And I can't wait until we can plan your wedding!" She squealed, then. "I'm getting married! Oh my God! I need to call Marcel. And then Nik, and Kol and Davina. And somebody needs to tell Josh. And Hope. We need to call Hope. And… she can't actually go shopping with us, but if we do this on a weekend when she doesn't have classes, she can astral project in and still be a part of it. We can get your bridesmaid's dresses at the same time. And then, once I'm gone, she can come over the next weekend to get fitted for her dress. Which is really another reason to do our shopping here. She can't go to New York to get hers."

Rebekah's excited babbling was rather dizzying, but Hayley was hardly going to complain. It was good to see her so happy. It was about time, really. This wedding was two hundred years in the making, and if anyone had earned a happy ending, it was Rebekah. But, she should probably try to get this under some semblance of control before the girl started vibrating, or something. "Okay, Beks. Deep breaths. Step one is to call Marcel and say yes. Unless you think that should be done in person?"

"In person. Right. I… I have a plane to catch. I mean, the way I'm feeling, I could probably run there, but…"

Hayley rolled her eyes. "You are not running to New York. Do you want to call any of the others, first? Or answer him and then tell them?"

"I'll talk to him, first. If you want to be the one to tell Hope, you can, though. And then Marcel and I will call the others." She kissed Hayley's cheek. "Thank you! And, Hayley… I mean it. We'll get to do this for you, too. I promise. They'll fix this, and we'll get him back. It's going to be fine. You'll see."

Hayley could only shake her head and watch Rebekah turn into a whirlwind of excited energy. It was seriously like watching the Tasmanian Devil. But, then she was alone. Alone with Elijah's things. And the ring she never got to wear. She knelt down and picked up the jewelry box and opened it. The ring was gorgeous. The man certainly had good taste. She slid the ring onto her finger and held her hand up, looking at it. "Please let her be right. Please let us get him back. And please let him still want me when we do."

She went to take the ring off, but couldn't bring herself to. For tonight, she was going to let herself wear it, let herself feel close to him. Let herself believe, even if it was just for one night, that somehow everything was going to be okay.

She grabbed the box it came in, ran up to Elijah's room at full vamp-speed, threw herself onto his bed, and cried. It wasn't fair. None of this was fair. Oh, Rebekah deserved this. She and Marcel had earned it. There was no denying that. And Hayley was hardly going to begrudge them their happiness. But, she wanted that for herself. She wanted Elijah back. She wanted him to be the one to put this ring on her finger. She wanted to be able to wear it openly. She wanted the gold band to go with it. She wanted all of it.

Eventually, she got herself under control. She washed her face, and put a bit of make-up on to hide the fact that she had been crying. And then she facetimed Caroline. "So, miss party planner extraordinaire, want to help me plan a wedding?"


	4. Life Isn't Always Fair - Marbekah pt 2

_Picks up immediately after the end of chapter 3. Caroline is excited about getting to plan a wedding, though waiting until the groom knows there's going to be a wedding, and the bride actually asks for her help might take more patience than she actually has. Meanwhile, Josh is under orders not to go - but that doesn't mean he's not going to send what is quickly becoming his traditional Mikaelson wedding present._

**~You Are Cordially Invited~**

Caroline squealed. "Who's getting married? I mean, it's obviously not you. If Elijah was back you or Hope would have told me. So, Rebekah or Freya?"

Hayley laughed. "Rebekah. We'll need your help with the guest list, again."

"Of course. I'm assuming that Klaus and Kol will both need my help? I mean, it's Rebekah. Which means Marcel. I imagine that Davina will want to actually go, so she won't be available to get Kol there."

"Probably. Rebekah hasn't even told Marcel that her answer is yes, yet. You, me, and her are the only ones that know. I'm assuming Davina will want to actually go, but we'll find out once they make an actual announcement."

"So, what do we know, so far?"

"Not much. She wants to come to New Orleans to get her dress. She wants to do it on a weekend, have you drive up and Hope astral project in so we can all shop together. Pick out bridesmaids dresses at the same time. Then I can have Hope come home the next weekend to be fitted. But, this wedding has been two hundred years in the making. They deserve as close to a real wedding as we can give them. And it's not like we can go to a normal wedding planner. Can you just imagine? 'So, at least three of the guests won't actually be there. They're kind of like holograms, for lack of a better way to explain it. The bride's brother considers the groom to be his son. And the groom's adopted daughter is married to the bride's other brother.' I'd rather not make some poor woman's head explode."

Caroline cackled. "Yes. The Mikaelsons are nothing if not complicated and impossible to explain to outsiders. I mean, I'm a vampire and I can barely wrap my head around it."

"Yeah. Throwing this family at somebody who thinks we're myths? No. Just… no. Besides, Rebekah specifically mentioned having you come up to go dress shopping with us. I think she'd like to have you involved in the planning."

"This is going to be so much fun! Do we have a time frame? No. We technically don't have a groom, yet, much less a time frame. That's okay. If anyone can plan a beautiful wedding on a moment's notice, it's me. Oh my God! I want to call her right now and offer to help her plan! Hayley! You're mean!"

Hayley blinked. Where had that come from? "Why am I mean?"

"Because, you called to ask me to help you plan a wedding, but I'm not even supposed to know that there _is_ a wedding, yet. And now I get to sit here and try to rein in my excitement until the engagement becomes official. And do you have any idea who you're talking to? You expect _me_ to stay calm when there's the party of the millennium to plan?"

Hayley laughed. "Sorry, Care. How about this? Rebekah gave me permission to be the one to tell Hope. How about if I let you do it, instead? Will that help tide you over? And you can also start deciding who you're going to send to Klaus and Kol. And I can't imagine that Beks would ask you to go dress shopping with her and then not invite you to the actual wedding. So, you can decide if you're going to actually go or astral project in with Hope." _Or go to L.A. and astral project in with Klaus._ Not that Hayley had any intention of saying anything like that out loud. Caroline would admit to having feelings for Klaus when she was ready. Hayley was the last person to want to push it. At least not right now. There would be plenty of time to tease her later, when Hayley was in a more playful mood. But, right now, planning Rebekah's wedding was hard enough. She wasn't ready to deal with anyone else's love life at the moment.

"It's not perfect, but it will do. We can flail together. Make sure Rebekah calls me as soon as she's ready to start planning. This is so exciting!"

Hayley just laughed and ended the call so that Caroline could go find Hope and flail with her. Then she sighed, and took off her ring and put it back in the box. She wasn't ready to bring it back downstairs, but all wearing it was doing was reminding her that she shouldn't be wearing it, yet. It actually made everything worse.

**~You Are Cordially Invited~**

Josh stared at his computer screen. Another wedding. And this time, he was being ordered to miss it. Not that he really blamed Marcel for that. After all, every trip home was automatically three days away from Elijah. Going home for Davina's wedding was one thing. As much as he loved Marcel and Rebekah, it wasn't the same thing. But, that didn't mean he was going to reply in an email. He grabbed his phone and went downstairs to his office and called Marcel.

"Congratulations! It's about damn time!"

"Thank you! You want to hear something ironic?"

"Sure, what?"

"Klaus said the same thing. And never mind that he's the reason it took us this long. I mean, forbidding us to be together. Daggering Rebekah to keep us apart. Threatening to kill me more times than I can count. And now, after being the whole reason it took us two hundred years to get here, he's telling me that it's about time. I will never understand that man."

Josh laughed. "So, how in the world are you going to work the wedding party? I mean, with Elijah being basically gone, that makes Klaus the family patriarch. So, shouldn't he be giving her away? But, isn't he your best friend?"

"Yeah. So, in a slightly modern twist, Freya is going to give Rebekah away. Hayley will be her maid of honor. Kol is officiating. And that frees Klaus up to be my best man. Typical Mikaelson weirdness. It wouldn't be us without it. Caroline is actually planning it. Apparently, she's having a blast."

"This doesn't surprise me. Sounds like you've actually gotten a lot of planning done, already."

"We had a group Skype chat this morning. I would have emailed you sooner so that you could be a part of it, but it was in the middle of your workday. And, unfortunately when it comes down to a choice between letting you be a part of things and not risking Elijah overhearing, he has to come first."

"No, that makes perfect sense. I wouldn't expect anything else. You're really ordering me not to go?"

"You can't keep leaving him for days at a time. Davina is your sister. I would never ask you to miss her wedding. But, as much as I love you and consider you family…"

"Elijah has to come first. No. I understand. But, it is really late here. So, I'm going to let you go. I'll talk to you later. And congratulations, again."

He ended the call, but he didn't go upstairs. Instead, he called Davina. "Hey there! So, I have a question for you."

"And what's that?"

"Are you actually going to Rebekah and Marcel's wedding, or are you projecting in with Kol?"

"I'm going. He's the closest thing I have to a father, so of course I'm going to his wedding. Caroline is sending someone to get Kol there. Him and Klaus. Hope will take care of herself the way she did for mine."

"Okay. Then I'm going to send their present to you. Will you be able to work it?"

She didn't even ask what it was. Then again, she was a smart girl, after her own wedding, it wasn't that hard to figure out what was becoming his traditional wedding present. "I'm a witch, Josh. If I can't figure out the electronics, I'll just use magic. So, what song are you going to do?"

"I'm thinking of 'After All' by Peter Cetera and Cher. It seems fitting for them. I still need to figure out a way to get it. I can't really ask him like I did for yours."

"Wait! Elijah knew you were recording him for a present for me and Kol? What in the world did he think your reason was?"

"I swear, I think Marcel may have compelled him to not question too much coming from me. But, I told him that I wanted you to be able to dance to something that was more personalized than just playing something off of a CD or streaming service."

"Actually, that makes sense. Good thinking. Also, I don't know if either of us ever properly thanked you for that."

"He did. You forget that? He walked up to me and hugged me and thanked me."

"It was my wedding day. I was a little preoccupied. But, I should have thanked you, too. It might not have meant the same thing to me that it did to Kol, but still… That was really beautiful. And thank you for making the DVD for us. Kol actually watches it a lot. I think he misses his siblings more than he'll ever admit. And at least with the others he can at least talk to them. He'll never admit it, but he really misses Elijah. He was so touched when everyone came to the wedding. So was I."

"And now you all get to do it again for Marcel and Rebekah. And I am under orders not to go. And I understand. I wouldn't like the idea of leaving Elijah again, either. But still. Marcel is my friend, my family."

"Yeah. It sucks. But, I know that Freya and Hope are working on it. They'll fix this, and we'll get you both home. And hey! You're immortal! You literally have forever to figure this out!"

"Not for you. Unless…" He trailed off. He wasn't sure he really wanted to ask the obvious question. Or to point out that Davina was mortal and her husband was not.

"I haven't decided, yet. It's a big decision. But, he's not pressuring me. I have until the day I die to decide. I don't know."

"Well, it would be nice to have you around forever. And obviously Kol would prefer it. But, you do what's best for you. Anyway… I should probably let you go. I'll be sending you a package as soon as I figure out how to do this."

"All right. Call me or text me when you send it. And I'll talk to you later." And then she was gone.

Josh sighed and turned his phone off before going back upstairs. Luckily Elijah was still asleep and apparently hadn't noticed his roommate leaving the apartment. That was good. He wasn't sure how he was going to explain that. Though, he could honestly say that he was talking to Dee. After all, time zones were a thing.

**~You Are Cordially Invited~**

There were only a few patrons left in the bar, which meant there wouldn't be much background noise on the recording. Hopefully this would work. Because he wouldn't get a second chance. He could hardly have a second person give Elijah an astronomical tip and request the same song that this customer was about to request. It would raise far too many questions.

He took a one hundred Euro bill out of the register and then turned to the only customer sitting at the bar. "You are going to take this bill and deposit it in the piano player's tip jar. Then you are going to request that he play 'After All' by Peter Cetera and Cher. You will then stand on the other side of the piano and listen to him. When the song is over, you will thank him, and leave the bar, and remember nothing." And then he got his phone out and held it up, zooming in to get a proper view of Elijah.

It went off without a hitch, luckily. If Elijah suspected that there was something wonky going on, he didn't let it show. And he never looked over at the bar, so he didn't see that Josh was recording him.

He waited until Elijah went to bed, and then he went down to his office and recorded a message for Marcel and Rebekah. Then he transferred both videos from his phone to his laptop, cleaned them up, and burned them to a DVD. And the next morning, he took it to the post office to be mailed. Neither he or Elijah could be at this wedding, but he did the best he could.


End file.
